Disclaimer – Hi, my name is JK Rowling, I own Harry Potter. No, wait, that's only in my dreams. We own nothing from Harry Potter, we only wish we did. We do, however, take the credit for anything you do not recognise from the series, as we created them during a very boring school day.
The Bennington twins walked through the barrier onto Platform 9¾ hand in hand, each silently thanking the Gods and Goddesses that they were used to magical happenings, even if they were of a different origin. Their parents followed them through, lifting the girls' trunks onto the gleaming scarlet train and saying goodbye to the two girls before telling them to board the train and find a carriage.
Willow led the way through the crowded train, until they found a compartment with only two boys in. She signalled to Heather, before sliding the door open and asking if they could sit down. The boy with sandy brown hair looked up from his book, revealing amber eyes.
"Alright."
"Thanks," Willow smiled, relieved, "I'm Willow, by the way. Willow Bennington. This is my twin sister Heather. We're first-years."
"Us, too. I'm Remus Lupin, and that's Peter Pettigrew. Nice to meet you."
The two girls slipped inside and sat down, quickly striking up a conversation with the boys. Moments later, Lily appeared and joined them, soon followed by James with another boy, who introduced himself as Sirius Black. The group sat for a while, just getting to know each other and forming a tentative friendship as a group, when the door to their compartment slammed open, the glass shattering. A girl with heavily lidded eyes, long dark hair and robes already on, stood at the front of a small group of teenagers dressed in robes. Shocked, the seven first-years looked up at the girl silently. That is, until a flash of anger and hatred crossed Sirius' face and he rose to face the group.
"What do you want, Bellatrix?" the dark-haired boy spat out.
"Not very polite, cousin. Is that any way to address your betters?" the girl, Bellatrix, replied.
"I don't see any betters. Are they behind you?"
The newcomers' faces twisted with rage at this.
"Your mother ask me to make sure you were introduced to the right people," Bellatrix sneered, stressing the last two words and looking down her nose at the occupants of the compartment.
"I think I can tell for myself, thanks," Sirius all but laughed, "at least I'll have a chance that way." The boy shut the door in their faces, muttering a word under his breath and the shards of glass flew back into place. He slumped back into his seat as the rest of the compartment let out a breath that no-one was aware they'd been holding.
Sirius looked up to see his companions staring at him in confusion.
"We don't get on," he answered shortly, to the unspoken question.
"Yeah, and little green men really do live on Mars," Willow muttered, voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Well, it's never been proven, but –"
"Heath? Not the time for another conspiracy theory! Goddess help me…"
"Willow, what did you just say?"
The Bennington twins' gazes locked, both pairs of eyes filled with fear. Less than a second later, the blonde girl turned back to the group, coolly answering:
"I said, goodness help me. What did you think?"
"Oh, nothing," Remus replied, but thinking to himself – that's not what she said… she's hiding something – they both are. Unbeknownst to him, a similar train of thought was racing through Lily's head.
The rest of the first of many long rides on the Hogwarts Express passed as journeys shared between young and carefree new friends can – discovering a little about more about each as the time ticked by. Of course, secrets were kept (such as the twins using their magic to close windows and the like), the kind of things that only a deep bond of trust can reveal, but by the time the seven first-years stepped onto Hogsmeade platform, a fragile friendship was in existence – a friendship that would one day grow stronger than these eleven year olds dreamed possible.
